


Halloween Night

by belivaird_st



Category: Carol (2015), The Price of Salt - Patricia Highsmith
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-31
Updated: 2018-10-31
Packaged: 2019-08-11 16:31:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16479038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/belivaird_st/pseuds/belivaird_st
Summary: Carol and Therese celebrate the holiday  together.





	1. Chapter 1

Therese stood in front of Carol in the bathroom smearing green face paint on her cheek with a foam sponge. The divorced mother decided that she was going to be The Witch from The Wizard of Oz for Halloween. She wore a long satin black dress, pale green nylons, and a pair of matching leather buckle shoes. Therese dabbed the sponge into the facial container to apply Carol’s face more with green paint. 

“How’s it coming along?” Carol asked her.

“You look very terrifying,” Therese grinned.

“Perfect,” Carol chuckled, but grew still, keeping her eyes shut. “When are you going to change into your costume, darling?”

“When I’m all done here,” Therese answered.

“Uh oh, I need to scratch my nose,” Carol said.

Therese pulled the foam sponge away and began to blow on Carol’s face to dry the paint and soothe the itch.

“Better?”

“Yes, thank you.”

When she was all done coloring Carol’s skin green, Therese sealed and twisted the cap back on the facial makeup container and went to go put it back inside the medicine cabinet. Carol opened her eyes and turned to face herself in the mirror. “ _Heh, heh, heh, heh! I’ll get you, my pretty! And your little dog, too!_ ” she used her best high falsetto voice to stay in character from the MGM film. She followed Therese out of the bathroom with her green fingers bared open. “ _You belong to me, my pretty!_ ”

Therese snorted as she picked up the pointy witch’s hat off the bed and held it out. Carol swiped it from her hands and perched it neatly on top of her head. “ _You’re too kind, dearie!_ ”

“I’ll go change now,” Therese said. She was more than comfortable in her red turtleneck and brown slacks, but today was Halloween, of course...

Carol hunched her body like an old woman and began to wobble away out of the bedroom. She had to go grab her broomstick, which was left inside the closet in the kitchen. 

Therese slipped each leg inside the furry lion suit and then each of her arms. She reached for the zipper behind her back and pulled it halfway up. Then she grabbed the lion suit head and slipped it over her own face - with the rounded ears, whiskers, and thick-reddish mane. Therese felt hot and suffocated inside the lion mask immediately. The eyes and nose were made with tiny air holes to breathe and see out of. 

Carol was already giving some candy out to a small group of trick ‘r treaters at the front door by the time Therese emerged as the Cowardly Lion. She could see tiny monsters, ghosts, princesses, and a cowboy, all carrying burlap bags in their hands.

“Trick or Treat!”

“Are you a witch?”

“ _That’s right, my dear! I’m the Witch of the West who wants Dorothy’s magical ruby slippers!_ ” Carol cackled. 

Some of the kids giggled. Others just stared and wanted to touch her broomstick. They glanced over towards Therese, who playfully shrunk back and coward with fear. 

“That’s the lion who’s scared!” cried out a little monster. 

“He can’t even roar,” laughed a ghost.

“Why, of course I can,” Therese spoke in a low, goofy lion voice. She held her breath, then shyly backed down.

The kids laughed while their parents encouraged for them to move on and say goodbye. Carol wiggled her fingers in the air at them while Therese waved a huge golden brown paw. The door closed with the bowl of candy for the next set of trick ‘r treaters. 

Therese quickly removed her lion suit head with her face dark pink and sweaty. Carol reached up to pat some of her staticky hair.

“Marvelous,” she said.


	2. Chapter 2

“Happy Halloween,” Therese spoke inside the lion costume to an astronaut, a hobo, and a black cat. She held the bowl of candy out as they all snatched their choice of treat. One of them- the astronaut- bent over and yanked on her fuzzy tail. 

The astronaut giggled and yanked some more. 

“Grrr,” Therese growled, making the kid let go and scramble off the granite steps back towards his mother and father. 

She held the door open a few more seconds until she closed it shut. She set the bowl of candy down on the kitchen table and then removed the lion head again.

Carol was seated with her chair pulled out and her legs slightly spread apart. She patted her green nylon knee for Therese to come over. Therese obliged; carrying the costume head in two paws. She placed her mask down before carefully sitting on top of Carol’s lap. 

“Hello, my pretty,” Carol greeted.

“Hi,” Therese smiled, leaning over. They gently kissed with Carol smudging her black lipstick and getting it smeared on Therese’s mouth.

The doorbell rang with a familiar voice coming from outside. “Mommy! Mommy!” 

“Rindy! Rindy!” Carol called back. Therese got off her lap to go move and open the door. Rindy barreled through the apartment in her Amelia Earhart costume with the helmet, goggles, scarf, and boots. She rushed over with a pumpkin pail filled with candy. Harge and John Aird, both came inside with their coats, gloves, and fedora hats. 

“Hi my sweetheart, hello,” Carol greeted her daughter the moment she hugged her by the waist. “Did you, and daddy, and grandpa, all have fun trick ‘r treating?”

“Uh huh,” Rindy nodded. She pulled back to run towards Therese to show off her candy. 

Harge mumbled a thank you when Carol awkwardly took his coat. 

“It’s freezing cold out there,” John Aird spoke, handing over his jacket and hat. “You can catch a chill, alright!”

“Please, sit,” Carol said, leaving to go hang up the coatware. “There’s cider I can boil up if you men want any.”

Harge and his father sat themselves down. Rindy was busy trying on Therese’s lion head, while Therese, herself, was searching through the girl’s candy.

“What are you doing?” Harge asked her.

“Checking Rindy’s candy,” Therese replied.

“What for?”

“To make sure there are no salt packets or pin needles in her pail...”

“Ah,” John nodded. “I knew a doctor who did that. Poisoned his very own children! You remember that, don’t you, Son?”

“No,” Harge frowned. “How long ago was that?”

“Back when you were just around Rindy’s age, I think,” John said. “It was all over the radio. Your mother was petrified. She wouldn’t let you have most of your candy.”

“I remember that,” Harge grumbled.

“Jen decided to stay home tonight?” Carol came back now without her witch’s hat. “Too cold out for her?”

“Yes,” John said, folding his hands together. “Jennifer never liked the holiday as much.”

“Poor thing,” Carol clicked her teeth. She headed straight for the dishes to pull a fresh clean saucepan out.

Rindy ran back up to Therese and helped her check her candy.


End file.
